The Synergy we create vis-à-vis The Profit we Share- How Game Theory helps!

In this talk, I will start with some basic ideas on cooperative games, followed by a couple of motivating examples. Cooperative Game Theory describes social, economic, and other interactions, where agents make binding agreements to create synergy and generate resources. Solutions provide insights on how agents contribute to the resource generation process and, therefore, how they should be rewarded for their contributions. Then, I will describe two very important and interesting solution concepts, viz., the core solution and the Shapley value, with their respective characterisations. This will be followed by some applications of cooperative games in networks, social choice theory. As an example, in particular, I will discuss how cooperative game theory is being applied in practical problems such as content monetisation in social media. I will conclude with some further extensions and possible avenues to address more general, vis-à-vis more dynamic interactions among the players.